By Olivia Burns
Australian-Melbourne based pop punk 5 piece, Between You & Me have finally returned home and have set out on their Sh!t Yeah Tour around Australia and the band’s hometown was the first to get a piece of the action! It was a packed line up of pop punk goodness with US band Young Culture and South Australia’s own band Towns!
It was a freezing cold evening as people lined up outside Melbourne’s 170 Russell, waiting for the doors to open, which were half an hour late. As soon as they started letting everyone in, you could see the relief on people’s faces, to finally be inside in the warmth. The show should have started already, but being half an hour late on doors, this was pushed back.
Towns took the stage to a nearly full house, there were erupting cheers once they got up on stage, there were a number of people in the audience that knew the band, consisting of a drummer and guitarist duo with both of them on vocals. They did a great job getting everyone warmed up and gained a few more fans with their punk rock sound.
Young Culture was up next, and I for one, was keen to see these guys for their first time playing in Australia. Kicking off with ‘Party Girl’ an oldie but a goodie, they brought an energetic presence from the very start. Even with it being their first time here, they shied away from playing their earlier work and stuck to mostly their latest tracks. Ending on ‘Holiday in Vegas’ they got everyone involved, encouraging the whole venue to jump as much as possible. .
Now that the crowd had been all warmed up, it was now Between You & Me’s time in the spotlight. This was the second time I’ve seen these guys live and once again their energy on stage stood out for me. I love this Aussie band, with their catchy tunes, along with infectious enthusiasm makes for such a great show. The whole band does so well with captivating the audience, non stop moving from one side of the stage to the other, interacting with both each other and the crowd. They radiate a feel-good-energy and it’s so hard to not just get right into it.
Their setlist bounced between new and old songs, playing favourites such as ‘Nevermind’, ‘In the Middle’ and they even played their earliest hit ‘Dakota’ and if you didn’t know any of their songs, there was one that you would definitely know, a cover of Smash Mouth’s ‘All Star’. With circle pits, crowd surfers and people on shoulders, they bring out the rowdiness in a crowd. The night was full of surprise guest appearances on stage from Alex and Gabe from Young Culture for ‘Kill My Vibe’ and ‘Deadbeat’ and then Mikaila Delgado of Yours Truly singing their collab song ‘Go To Hell’ together. As the night was coming to the inevitable end, they signed off with ‘Butterflies’, my personal favourite of theirs. The crowd and band alike did not hold back, making sure that the set ended on a high.
Australia produces a lot of talent, and Between You & Me is a standout example. They consistently deliver excellent performances and are so great at what they do. Their success with international tours is well-deserved, and I can’t wait to see their continued growth!
Photo Gallery : Between You And Me – 170 Russell (05.17.2024)
